AMERICAN WAY: You've become pretty accustomed to
success. Still, how surprised were you that The Apprentice was such
a hit?DONALD TRUMP: I never would have anticipated it being number
one in the ratings. I figured it would be a wonderful show that was
well produced. But friends of mine told me that 95 percent of the
shows that go on television fail. And most of them fail
immediately. A lot of people told me not to do The Apprentice
because, statistically, it would fail. Then, instead of failing, it
became the hottest show on television.

AMERICAN WAY: How concerned were you about the
possibility of being associated with a big, public flop?TRUMP: I can tell you that I hated the 95 percent statistic.
And if it had failed, the media would have been all over it.
Reporters would have made it a front-page story. But now Sylvester
Stallone, a friend of mine, is going to do a TV show, and he said
that he's going to be just like Donald Trump. It's a crazy
phenomenon.

AMERICAN WAY: Less crazy, and probably less fleeting,
is the success you've had as a real-estate developer. What are the
buildings in Manhattan that every visitor ought to see?TRUMP: Definitely Trump Tower. It's the number-one tourist
attraction in New York. I would also say that you definitely want
to see the Empire State Building. It's a great building. You want
to see the New York Stock Exchange. It's fascinating, but these
days, tough to get into. Right across from it, 40 Wall Street
[conveniently called The Trump Building] is a landmark and the
tallest building in downtown Manhattan. And the Chrysler Building
has always been beautiful.